Cycad

prehistoric plant · slow grower · weird reproduction

Ancient living fossils. Cycads have been around since the age of dinosaurs and barely changed over millions of years. They're like time travelers still growing on Earth today.

Stocky trunk builders. Cycads have thick, woody trunks topped with a crown of giant feather-shaped leaves that stick out like a green explosion. Some stay small and stubby while others grow as tall as a person.

Incredibly slow growers. A cycad might grow only an inch or two per year and can live for hundreds of years, making them some of the longest-living plants on the planet.

Picky about beetles. Cycads need special beetles, tiny insects, or moths to help them make seeds, and each cycad species usually has its own favorite pollinator that evolved just for that plant.

Plants pick a gender. Each cycad plant is either all male or all female for its whole life, unlike many plants that have both on the same stem.